Outside of book of souls (and Senjutsu) I didn’t have any of the reunion era on vinyl. I just got them all over the past two months or so. Can’t wait to play them all, haven’t had a chance yet
I think you will be in for a treat. Whenever you get the chance to listen to them let us know your thoughts, I may pick a few of them up myself.
Yes, I had a first listen on phones the other night (Sennheiser HD600's) and the clipping was almost unbearable in places. I could hear it on speakers but nowhere near as intrusive. Parts of my favourite song The Parchment are ruined on phones, especially as most of the solos are clipping. I wonder whether it was overdriven during recording or mixing? I doubt it was during mastering, unless it got clipped and then volume reduced back down afterwards.
On Senjutsu, you can't tell that there are 3 guitarists. Fire Janick & spread the money around 5 guys instead of 6.
I’ve stopped listened to it now as I just can’t get into it. Makes me wonder, why did they guys can this for over two years?
He's one of their best songwriters and has been in the band for over 30 years. And they're not worried about their financial security at this point in their career.
If you can’t hear 3 guitarist then you’re not listening. Furthermore, Janick is, IMO, man of the match on Senjutsu when it comes to solos. I’m usually an Adrian fan but Janick has upped his game for the new album and I think he, overall, plays the best solos on the album.
After listening to this album for a couple weeks now, all I can say is just blown away how they topped The Book of Souls IMO. Death of the Celts with the heavy 6/8 verses, the epic galloping riffs in The Time Machine, the throttling Days of Future Past, the catchy The Writing On the Wall, and the very strong closer Hell On Earth. This is a very strong, classic Maiden album that stands with the classic heavyweights such as Seventh Son of a Seventh Son, Powerslave, or Somewhere In Time, and it's predecessor The Book of Souls. One of the best metal releases and strongest overall of this year of great albums.
Nonsense. Easy to tell their work as they sit distinctly in their own part of the stereo field. Solos tend to be centred - but everything else is Dave left, Adrian centre, Janick right. Each has their own solo style. Janick has been in the band 30 years now, has written many more songs than Dave, and really kept them afloat when Harris was in the doldrums.
I feel like Jannick is always playing the same ****. The album in which he truly shinned was The X Factor but FOTD also had good moments
Hence the problem with the mix and Shirley not really understanding what he should be doing to make the instruments have some air about them. Getting rid of Janick makes no sense, they are now a 3-headed monster..........They fly around the world in a modded customized 777 jumbo Ed Force One, being short of money is not an issue....
So one of the only few 80's Metal bands still alive touring and releasing albums get a kicking because they have 3 guitarists. Or a preferred producer. Great album anyway.
I would rate the reunion albums thus: Brave New World The Final Frontier A Matter Of Life And Death Senjutsu The Book Of Souls Dance Of Death
Repeating myself here. So very interesting (and good that it is so) to see how different we all percieve music (or indeed art).
The Final Frontier would be the greatest reunion album if El Dorado and Mother of Mercy were excised onto a Single release and the remainder of the album remained intact. Isle of Avalon, Starblind, The Man Who Would be King, and Wild Wind Blows are all 10/10 perfect Maiden songs, and The Talisman and The Alchemist are easy 9/10 tracks its pretty much a perfect album starting with The Alchemist and running all the way through the last notes of WtWWB
Very good question. It is so hard to quantify what are the qualities one hear in a composition. I think it is the only song on the album where i really feel that the chorus lifts from over the rest of the song. But it’s obvious from reading her, that something about TFF that hits many fans, pass me totally by. And that is ofcourse to do with me, not them. Re HCW. It’s my least fave track on SIT BUT since i seriously think SIT is the best metal album ever created, it still ranks high for me.
SiT has become my favorite Maiden album also - just fantastic from start to finish (though I usually skip HCW, I still recognize it as a great song, just overshadowed by the 7 other tracks)
my top 5 list always gets ridiculed: 1: Somewhere in Time 2: Killers 3: Powerslave 4: The X Factor (not a joke) 5: The Final Frontier (Brave New World is sometimes takes the 5th spot and moves TFF to 6th place)
and sometimes TXF even replaces Powerslave at #3 - which usually results in pies and/or tomatoes being thrown in my general direction. One unique factor? Each vocalist has produced a perfect album IMHO. It could be gleaned that I'm a huge Smith/Murray fan (especially Davey), and I often rate IM albums according to how much AIR GUITAR ferocity I can wage when listening!